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Friday, May 28, 2010

The Best Sushi Restaurant in New York City

In a city of 8 million people, you'd think New York would have at least a handful of sushi conveyor belt restaurants.

Maybe it does, but they're sure hard to find.

Luckily, we found a winner on our second try.

Last month we tried Sushiya, a sushi restaurant inside the Whole Foods Bowery. But the selection on the conveyor belt was sparse (we admittedly got there shortly before closing, but still) and the atmosphere was a little too, well, pristine. No character.

East Japanese Restaurant (also known as Kaiten Sushi East) in Gramercy, however, had the trifecta: character, selection, good prices.

I knew I was in for a good time when I immediately saw a plate of dried seaweed that I remembered eating every morning for breakfast in Tokyo. I plucked the plate off the belt right away, but no worries. I saw so many servings of seaweed that it was impossible to keep count.

In fact, that was the best part. The belt was so crowded that the lips of the plates almost always overlapped. So whenever I felt like some spicy tuna or an avocado roll, I knew it wouldn't take long before one would roll my way.

What's more, the plates started at $1.50. Sure, it was only three pieces per plate, but at these prices I didn't even care. We were actually full when we left, which never happens at a sushi restaurant.

East Japanese Restaurant has hopped, skipped and jumped into second place on my personal list of favorite restaurants in New York City. Don't remember my favorite? Take a look here.